By JIM BARON

PROVIDENCE — With the Providence Police Department hobbled by a drug scandal in its ranks, state Rep. Roberto DaSilva, a Pawtucket Police lieutenant, says he would like all public safety personnel to take random drug tests annually.

The East Providence representative says he wants to bring together the labor unions representing police, firefighters, rescue workers and correctional officers together to fashion a plan that is “fair to the employees and protects the public.
“I want to be cognizant of everybody's civil liberties,” DaSilva said Thursday, “I want to talk to all the people involved and craft something that is fair to everybody.”
The Fraternal Order of Police lodge representing Providence Police officers rejected Providence Mayor David Cicilline's call that all of the police officers in that city submit to random drug tests and the mayor has since backed away from that demand. But DaSilva said, “every officer I have talked to, from the highest-ranking officer to the lowest-ranking officer, people from other departments, have given me a positive  response.
“In fact,” DaSilva said in a written statement, “they said they would welcome it to prove to members of their communities that they are beyond reproach.”
“If you have nothing to hide,” DaSilva said, “then you should have no problem with this.”
The idea behind the testing is not punitive, DaSilva said, but as a tool to get an officer who is having trouble with illegal drug use or abuse of controlled substances the hep he or she needs.
“If you have an employee who is going down that path, you don't want him or her cast aside,” he said. “If you identify someone who is having a problem, you get them the help they need so you can retain that employee and have him remain a productive employee.”
“I don't want to see people's careers destroyed because they have fallen on hard times,” DaSilva added, “but at the same time, I don't want a guy who is having a problem with substance abuse working day-to-day in a position where he can compromise the safety of his fellow police officers or compromise the integrity of the investigations.
One of the officers involved in the Providence scandal is accused of providing information about police activities to his brother, an alleged cocaine dealer.
The Rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union will oppose the bill that DaSilva will eventually introduce, said Executive Director Steven Brown.
“Random drug testing in employment is ineffective and an extraordinary invasion of privacy with no real benefit,” Brown told The Times. “It's a pretty useless way to root out drug use.” 
“There are all sorts of ways to beat the test,” he added. “It's now a cottage industry – how to beat drug tests.
“The real irony is that drug tests are much more likely to catch marijuana users than anyone using hard drugs. Marijuana stays in the person's system three to four weeks; hard drugs like cocaine and heroin are flushed out of the system in 24 hours. 
Brown said state law already gives employers the tools to require drug testing when there is reason to believe someone is impaired on the job. “That seems to work well,” he said.
Currently, police officers and firefighters are required to submit to drug testing only when they are first hired, DaSilva said.